


Lost in the snow

by Socriba



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Christmas Special, F/F, Magic, Mentioned Mercedes von Martritz, Strangers to Friends to Lovers, curse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-17 12:02:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28599636
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Socriba/pseuds/Socriba
Summary: Finding herself caught in a snowstorm, Annette was rescued by a silver-haired witch living in the depths of the woods. But who could be that person she never heard of? And more importantly: will they be able to properly celebrate Sothismas?A Fantasy Christmas AU for Annette and Lysithea
Relationships: Annette Fantine Dominic/Lysithea von Ordelia
Kudos: 6





	1. Sothismas

Everything was white. The wind was howling in Annette’s ears. The snow in the air was choking her vision up, even with her hand as a peak. The forest’s ground was reaching her thighs, making every step even harder than the previous one. Her free hand was tightening her coat around her as much as she could but it wasn’t changing how frozen she was feeling much. And yet, her throat was on fire, as she screamed for help for a while but nobody ever answered her because there was no one around here, she wasn’t even sure to be walking towards the village. It was hell. Hell made of ice, snow and wind instead of flames but hell nonetheless. She thought she still knew the forest well, that she couldn’t get lost. What were three mere years spent far from the village you grew up in when you actually  _ grew up _ in that village? Well, the disaster she caught herself into was proof enough that three years were enough to forget. Another gust of wind made the girl turn her head to avoid having more snow on her face.

That’s when she saw it, a glimmer of light through snow and trees. There was something there, someone trapped with her in this storm. Annette gathered every bit of strength she had left and began stumbling blindly towards the light. It seemed far away and sometimes she was feeling like the glimmer was withdrawing, staying out of reach. But as she eventually reached the light, Annette found out it was coming from the window of a very unmovable chalet, an inhabited chalet. The wind was growing stronger by the minutes, as was the coldness always growing colder. But no, Annette would not die. Not here, not now, not when safety was within arm’s reach. A few difficult steps ahead was the door. Hurried to enter, Annette tried instantly to open the door. It was locked. No… Not like this! With a strength born of despair, Annette hammered on the door with her small fists, hoping to make enough noise to cover the howl of the wind.

“PLEASE! Open!! Open the door”. She screamed, the pain in her throat inflaming as well. “Please! Open! I beg you!” And in a moment of despair, she stopped screaming for a second. “I beg you…”

It was as if the door waited for her to stop creaming and hurting it to magically open. Magically was indeed the right word because there was no one behind the door. A white-haired woman was coming to see what was going on but she was still a few steps away, too far to prevent Annette from falling to the ground when her legs gave in. “What’s going… Oh!” The woman exclaimed when she saw a human-shaped snowheap. 

“Let’s get you to the fireplace.” Annette, still lying on the ground, felt two arms trying to lift her up. She tried to help as much as she could but there was nothing much she could do with how little strength she had left. “Thank you…” Was all she could whisper. The door behind her was closing, putting a stop to the wind’s intrusion but she was so tired she barely felt it and before her saviour could move her to the fireplace, her vision went dark as she drifted off into a dreamless sleep.

~

The first thing Annette noticed when she woke up was that she wasn’t cold anymore. From what she was feeling she was probably in a bed but opening her eyes wasn’t giving her much information, little light was coming from below the door of the bedroom but apart from that the room was left in the dark. She was also hearing that the storm hadn't calmed down yet. Staying in bed wasn’t going to help her understand where she was, so Annette got quickly out of bed and… wait! These aren’t her clothes! Where is her dress gone? The one she was wearing now wasn’t so different, it was still mainly white but the sleeves, the sides and the bottom were decorated with lilac knotwork and a few patterns of lilies. It was a nice dress but where did it come from? So many questions and the only way to find out everything was to find her saviour.

Opening the door, Annette found herself in the living room she entered last night, even though from a different door. A pleasant fire was dancing in the fireplace, giving its warmth to the rest of the room. Even if the room itself was small, the owner still managed to put a couple chairs near the fireplace and below them a red carpet decorated by golden threads. Just on Annette’s right was sitting a simple chest of drawers below a window whitened by snow. The wind’s owl became louder for a few seconds, as if the wind was saying that it wasn’t done yet. No one was here for now and apart from the wind, no sound could be heard, which meant that Annette would have to keep searching. 

The living room had four doors, including the one leading to the outside and the one of the bedroom, the other two were open. With a quick look inside the closest one, Annette found out it was a small kitchen with once again no one in here. Well, you always find what you’re looking for in the last pocket Annette said to herself while heading towards the last room. It was a small study crawling with books of all sizes and there was someone in there! She was studying a book, one of the biggest Annette ever saw, and seemed so focused on it that Annette stopped herself from disrupting her. When Annette was studying magic at the academy, she had been in that studying mood where you don’t want anyone to disturb you, even a close friend. But on the other hand she had to thank her for saving her life and letting her know she was awake. Torned between these two ideas, Annette found herself just standing there, waiting for her host to notice her, giving her plenty of time to observe the woman and detail her traits.

She seemed as young as Annette, probably around twenty years old or a couple years more. Her hair, as white as the snow they could find outside the house, was giving form to a cascade, going from her head to her waist and surrounding her face. On this face, her eyes immediately drew Annette’s attention, mostly because she had trouble saying which color they were, it was a mesmerizing color, a mix between red and pink, a bit redder than pink and a bit pinker than red. These eyes were fully focused on that book, not leaving at any moment the page they were reading. Her face was completed by a small nose and a cute mouth whose pink lips were pressed into a thin line, proof of the woman’s concentration. 

Finding out how beautiful the woman was added to Annette’s growing embarrassment of standing there and doing nothing. Finally deciding that it was a better idea to let her host know she was here than standing there and feeling silly, Annette took a step forward and tripped over a pile of books. Falling flat on her face with a scream, the other woman screamed as well in surprise, her concentration shattered. When Annette picked herself up, she made eye-contact with the pink-red-eyed woman, she felt sillier than she ever felt, even more than the time she accidentally called her professor “daddy”. The other woman looked like she was recovering from her surprise but didn’t say anything, so it was up to Annette to break the ice.

“Humm… Hello?”

The other woman stayed speechless for a couple more seconds. “You nearly scared me to death, you know that?”

“I’m so sorry! I just wanted you to know that I was awake and… I messed up.” Annette lowered her eyes, why was she always messing things up?

“H-hey, it’s alright, you just scared me.” Annette looked back to the woman, who lifted herself up from her chair. “I’m Lysithea, what’s your name?”

“I’m Annette. Thank you so much for helping me, you’re a lifesaver! If there’s anything I can do to repay you, let me know.” That came out without a second thought on what a woman living alone in the woods could really ask, but since she saved her life, she couldn’t be a bad person?

“You’re welcome but that was only natural, I couldn’t leave you out in this storm. And thank you for your proposition but that won’t be necessary, I do everything on my own” Lysithea seemed confident about this and Annette had no reason to doubt her but still.

“I insist! You saved my life, there’s surely something I can do to help you, even just a little.” Annette was determined too and this seemed to make Lysithea reconsider it.

“Okay… I’ll think about it. For now, how about we eat something, I’m sure you must be starving.” She was right but Annette seemed to have forgotten her hunger until now, too preoccupied by the recent events.

“Oh, you’re right!”

~

Standing in the kitchen, Annette could now observe it properly. The table was situated near a window and was surrounded by three chairs, which was surprising considering that Lysithea seemed to live alone. There was also a sideboard containing the crockery. Four jars were sitting on top of the piece of furniture, one was empty but there were cookies in the others with two of them being full and the last one being half-full. Lysithea came back from the only room Annette hadn’t visited and by judging what the woman brought back from it, it must be the storehouse.

They had a simple lunch made of potatoes and a few slivers of salted pheasant and shared a bit of their own lives as doing so. Annette learned that Lysithea was a witch and that she settled in this at-that-time abandoned chalet about three years ago. That explained why she never heard of the witch in the woods since she has been in Fhirdiad’s magic academy for the last three years and on top of that the white-haired woman said she had been avoiding the villagers and never had any contact with them.

“Why? Wouldn’t it have been easier than being on your own?” Annette knew the villagers well, they were nice, well, most of them, and would have gladly helped her.

“I wanted to be alone so I could study in peace. Besides, most people don’t like magic and its users, especially in remote villages like yours.” What was she saying? No one she knew would think like that!

“No one in the village would treat you differently because you’re a witch. They don’t do that with me.” Lysithea raised an eyebrow, her self- confidence once again manifested herself through her voice.

“Really ?” Annette started to doubt, the other woman seemed to know her subject. But then, she remembered Hervret’s gaze when she greeted him last week, and that Vaelin hasn’t come to see her since she returned from the academy, even though they were childhood friends and that was only what she was remembering now.

“Well, maybe some don’t like magic, but the others are nice!”

“I’m not convinced.” Annette neither.

They finished their lunch in silence, allowing Annette’s mind to wander. Could Lysithea be right? Could some of the villagers hate her because she’s using magic?When both women had finished eating, the redhead offered to clear the table.

“Thank you.” The other woman replied, “I’ll get back to my studies, don’t disturb me unless it’s important please.”

And with that she left, leaving Annette alone with her thoughts. Once the table was clean, she looked through the window, at the storm that wasn’t showing any sign of decrease. She was stuck here, in this house in the middle of the forest with a total stranger, by a snow storm on the day of Sothismas. Not that Sothismas with her family would have been that great, considering the recent atmosphere… No! These kinds of thoughts aren’t like her! 

Pulling her gaze off the window, Annette decided to do something productive. She could ask Lysithea to lend her one of her grimoires but another idea entered her mind: the witch didn’t seem to be a great cook. The lunch had been good, but it had just been potatoes and cold meat, if things stayed like this for the dinner, it would be quite gloomy. That was settled! Annette would prepare a wonderful dinner for Sothismas and to thank her savior! And she still had in mind that recipe that Mercedes taught her! But she got to be double careful to both not making too much noise and not wasting anything, both of these could make Lysithea angry and Annette’s intuition was telling her it wasn’t a good idea to anger a witch.

The cooking session started and the cook was more careful not to make any mistake than during some exams. She had to be careful with the knives, with the flames, not to forget the cake in the oven, not to break anything, not to forget the cake in the oven, with the quantities… How many chestnuts should she stuff the turkey with? Maybe she could add something else, like some… Ah! The cake!

Annette rushed to the oven to pull the cake out of its bowels. The disaster has been avoided. It wasn't burned, just really cooked, but it had been a close call. It was now the turkey’s turn in the oven and since Annette had nothing else to do, she stayed in front of it, to be sure she wouldn't forget it. It was long and boring and she caught herself thinking about completely different things like what her parents were doing right now to celebrate Sothismas while she was missing. They probably weren’t celebrating, maybe even arguing? Goddess, that would be horrible. No! Now was not the time to think about it, she had to set the table first and after looking around for a time, it appeared that Lysithea didn’t have fancy silverware but Annette still managed to arrange something she would call pretty, the flowers in the vase even made it look a bit romantic. Not that she was interested in Lysithea or anything! Well, she was pretty but they only had known each other for a few hours now and… Ah! The turkey!

Once again, the disaster had been avoided but it also once again had been a close call. Annette could finally breathe, everything was ready, she just had to let Lysithea know, so she headed towards her office. Only to trip with a scream. Did she really trip over the  _ carpet  _ ? She heard Lysithea scream and she appeared through the door as the redhead was picking herself up.

“Are you alright? Did anything happen?”

“No, it’s alright, it’s just… you know… me.” Annette sighed. “I made dinner, so… if you want to eat… it’s ready.”

The witch’s face brightened. “I’m coming, just give me a minute.”

Back into the kitchen, Annette made some last minute modifications, more to avoid waiting idly than really improving things. After what felt like half an hour but probably didn’t last more than two minutes, Lysithea finally entered the kitchen.

“Wow! You made all of this Annette?”

The cook could feel she was blushing when she answered. “Y-Yeah… It took me the entire afternoon but I wanted to make something good since you saved me and it’s Sothismas today. We don’t have presents but… At least we’ll share a good meal!”

The witch seemed surprised, which surprised Annette, what did she say that could surprise someone?

“I didn’t know it was Sothismas, but I’m sure we’ll have a great meal!”

Annette wasn’t surprised, she was astonished! How could someone not know when Sothismas is? One of the greatest days of the year! She was trying very hard to prevent her jaw from dropping.

“What? Don’t give me that look!” She almost sounded embarrassed. “I don’t count the days so I didn’t know when  _ exactly _ Sothismas was but I knew it shouldn’t have been far from today!”

Gathering herself, the redhead invited her host to sit down at the table and began to

cut the turkey. We both were served, they simply began to eat and chatted like during lunch.

“I was wondering, how do you survive all on your own in the forest? I mean, you don’t look like a hunter or something.”

“I’m doing almost everything with magic, from cutting wood to hunting. But I’ll admit that the first year was… difficult, I didn’t know how to survive in a forest.”

That was impressive! If Annette were to be in the same situation, she didn’t know if she would adapt this well. “How did you manage it?”

“The same way I learned magic: through books and experiments! ” Lysithea swallowed another bit of turkey. “It’s so good! You’re a masterchef Annette!” Her eyes, filled with greed, drifted to the cake lying on the table, completely defenseless. “If the cake is as good as the meat, I can’t wait to taste it!”

The chef’s smile widened, she wasn’t praised often for her food and was a lot more accustomed to hear reprimands for burning everything or hearing Mercie that it was alright. It crossed her mind that she’ll have to write to her, she surely would be pleased to hear this story of how she celebrated Sothismas with a witch in a forest during a snowstorm. “Thanks! It’s a recipe I got from a friend and she’s a much better cook than I am. You should try her sweets, they are to die for!”

Another glimmer of greed passed through Lysithea’s eyes when the sweets were mentioned. “I’d love to!”

“By the way, may I ask you what kind of magic you’re studying?.” Annette was simply curious but when she saw the witch’s smile instantly narrowing and how long it took her to answer, she wondered if she asked something she shouldn’t have.

“You may call it… cursebreaking I guess?” Well, nothing too dangerous so why did she seem reluctant talking about this? It was probably best not to push the subject too far though.

“Really? I studied cursebreaking too at the Academy. Which book are you on right now? Maybe it’s one I studied as well.”

Lysithea seemed to relax, only a bit though. “The Compendium of Light and Dark. I’m understanding it but only slowly and it’s starting to get on my nerves.”

“Oh yes! I remember this one! It frustrated me too until a friend came to my aid and showed me that the author just over complicated everything. Like, he wrote a few times really complicated paragraphs just to describe a different application of a formula he talked about 2 pages ago.” Lysithea stopped for a second, just as if realizing something.

“That… makes sense, I think I already noticed something like that a couple times.”

“I could help you if there’s something you don’t understand. If you need anything, just ask!”

“Thank you but I’ll still try on my own first. Now, how about you lend me this cake so we can savour it ?”

The cake was simply delicious. On top of that, Lysithea seemed to be an even bigger fan of sweets than Annette herself and seeing her devouring the cake while looking so delighted contented Annette’s heart just as much as the cake itself. The both of them even managed to eat the entire cake! And on top of that, Lysithea magically bringed the started cookie jar to her hand. Not giving a look to Annette, she opened it and began to fiercely eat a cookie. She was looking a bit like a cute white-furred squirrel and when she eventually lifted her head up and met her guest’s gaze, she looked embarrassed and hastily finished her mouthful.

“Do you… want one?”

How could someone turn down such an offer? Besides, the cookies looked delicious. And after tasting them, Annette could tell they were. In this moment where everything was fine, she suddenly remembered a question left unanswered she had from the morning.

“Oh, before I forget. Lysithea, do you know where my clothes are?” This innocent question made Lysithea instantly turn bright red

“Well… You see… They were full of snow so I thought you would catch a cold, so… I removed them and dressed you with these. I swear I had nothing else in mind!” Annette was surprised by the speed of that last sentence.

“Whoa! I believe you, don’t worry.”

The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful. The women had a pleasant chat near the fireplace, sharing their thoughts over this or that theory. But where Lysithea seemed genuinely curious about what Annette did and studied, always asking for more details and discussing them, she always remained vague about what she was doing and studying and really prompt to change the subject should the conversation head towards her studies a little too much. Nevertheless, it had been a great evening with the unexpected encounter of a new friend, this deep in the woods. All things must come to an end though and it’s when the women decided to go to bed that another question popped in Annette’s mind.

“Where do I sleep?”

Lysithea stopped, just as if her guest had said something very stupid.

“I only have one bed.”

“It’s alright, just lend me a blanket and I’ll sleep in one of the chairs.”

For a couple seconds, Lysithea seemed confused, not understanding Annette’s way of thinking until she got it. Unlike Annette’s expectations though, her cheeks turned a little pink

“Do you remember where you slept last night?”

Well, not since she felt unconscious just after entering the house. All she remembered was that she awakened in a bed and - Oh. Her reasoning must have been readable on her face because Annette didn’t even have to answer.

“Exactly, we shared my bed. Again, I didn’t do anything to you! It's just that I thought it would be more comfortable for you.”

Well, it surely was… surprising. Then again, what choice did she have? Between sleeping in a chair or with Lysithea, the obvious best was sleeping with the witch. Which was totally only a friend by the way!

~

Once in bed, Annette couldn’t sleep. Her heart was beating fast, sleeping with someone, even as a friend, was a whole new experience, she was actually  _ sharing a bed _ with someone! And that someone seemed to be sleeping judging by the rhythm of her breath. Outside, the wind was still howling, it seemed weaker than in the morning to Annette’s ears. Maybe it would be down by the morning so she could go back home? Her parents were probably worried sick about her but just thinking about it made her think they probably argued about that. Why were they arguing so much recently? They weren’t doing that three years ago… 

“N-No…”

Seemed like Lysithea was speaking in her sleep. Her breath had quickened too, was she having a bad dream?

“No… don’t… No!”

She was clearly having a nightmare! Pulling herself closer, Annette first started to just talk to the sleeping woman.

“It’s alright Lysithea. I’m here. I’m with you.”

“Kil… don’t kill them… me ins...” 

What  _ kind _ of nightmare was she having? It was clearly a case of force majeure so Annette decided to flout her hesitations to touch Lysithea and pulled her into a tight hug.

“Come here sweetheart. I’m here. I’ll protect you. No one will hurt you.”

Lysithea gave her hug back to Annette, holding her so tight it took her breath away for a moment. Once she could breath more easily the redhead ran her hand through the hairs of the other woman, whispering into her ear as she was sobbing into her neck.

“I am here sweetheart. I protect you.”

After a few other minutes like this with Lysithea sobbing against her friend’s neck and Annette comforting her, Lysithea finally stopped crying and drifted back into a nightmareless sleep. Annette followed shortly after, feeling good in the other woman’s arm.

~

The next morning, none of the girls talked about what happened during the night and both were fine with that. The storm had calmed down during the night and painted everything in white as far as the eye could see, which was resulting in huge quantities of snow everywhere that would have made the women’s progression a real challenge if they hadn’t both been capable mages able of putting the snow to the side and then back where it was so nobody could follow the trail. Eventually, they came to the village and the time they had to part ways.

“I’ll leave you here, I don’t want to be seen.”

“Can I come to your house if I want to see you?” This came out all of a sudden but she needed to know. She needed to know if the woman would agree to see her again because Annette certainly would. Lysithea seemed hesitant for a moment but answered nonetheless.

“If you ever want to, I’ll be happy to see you again.”

“Great! So, until next time Lys!”

“Until next time.”

Turning to the village, Annette headed towards her parent’s home, feeling suddenly a bit guilty since she enjoyed her time with Lysithea so much while they probably had a very hard time believing she was lost alone and defenceless in the snowstorm. Turning back one last time to see Lysithea go back to her house, she found out the witch was nowhere to be seen and there were no footprints either. Did she just teleport or something?

“Aw girl, you got to teach me that one!”


	2. The days after

Unlike what Lysithea expected, Annette actually came back to her house. Just two days after she went back to her village, she was knocking on the door, her clothes full of snow, a bag in her hand and that damned smile that could make anything melt like ice cream in summer on her face. Especially the heart of a lone witch living far from everything.

“You must be freezing, come inside!”

“I just tripped in the snow. There was a root sneakily hidden waiting just for me! Anyway, I brought you a book I studied at the Academy. It’s about cursebreaking so I thought you might be interested. Oh and you absolutely need to teach me how to teleport like you!”

That was a lot of information at once but it was Annette’s style, Lysithea liked it. And she proved that she was indeed quite skilled with magic by mastering the teleportation spell before the end of the afternoon. With the time they had left, it was Annette who taught Lysithea the recipe of Mercedes’s cake, making the witch wish she knew that person.

~

And so their little routine began. Annette was coming every three to four days and they were spending time together by playing a game, baking, discussing magic… She even convinced Lysithea to go out to play in the snow despite how childish it was. Soon, a month vanished, too quickly followed by another. Little by little, Annette was opening her heart to the other woman, which was extremely careful to avoid speaking of her or her past. She learned that when Annette came back from the Academy, she found out that her parents were sleeping in separate rooms and were arguing often.

“I’m sorry, you must think that I only come here to take a break from home every now and then.”

“Not at all, I already told you that you’re welcome here anytime.”

At some point, Lysithea started to feel a strange heat in her chest when the other woman was around and a sort of emptiness when she was leaving. If she wanted, she knew she could put a name on those feelings but she didn’t want to. She had so little time left and her friendship with Annette was costing her so much time already, despite how pleasurable it was, she couldn’t afford to lose more time. And every time she was noticing the feeling of emptiness, her family was coming to her mind and she was working extra hard to make up for lost time, even if a part of her was feeling a bit guilty about considering the time spent with Annette as lost time.

~

  
One day, Annette arrived looking a bit sullen. It wasn’t really new, it usually meant that her parents argued. Happily, her mood was usually quickly shifting to a more cheerful one after a couple hours spent in the house in the forest.

“They argued again ?”

“How do you know ?”Annette answered the question with another question, surprisingly looking surprised. Her shows of naivety were always making Lysithea want to tease her. Just a little though.

“Witches secret !”

Annette’s genuinely impressed expression was priceless and it was hard not to laugh. “You know Lys, I’m starting to think that you’re spying on me !”

“Just kidding Annette. It’s just that I can read it on your face. What was it this time ?”

Once again, Annette’s expression shifted, this time she was pouting. “Hey it’s not cool Lys !” She let out a deep sigh before continuing, her original sullen expression coming back. “Well, if you want to know, about you. They argued about you and about how much of a dangerous person could be someone living alone in the forest far from everything and that I must be under the influence of dark magic to come back to spend time with you and so on… Goddess, I don’t even know why they argued, they were both thinking the same! Sometimes I wonder if they’re just doing it for sport !”

Lysithea knew that their friendship would cause some problems to Annette one day or another but it looked like she didn’t. To her she wasn’t some dark witch living alone far into the forest, she simply was a friend she was spending time with. This warmed Lysithea’s heart and brought a smile to her face, even if it wasn’t the best time to smile.

“Let’s talk about something else then. Have you brought a new book ?” This kinda became a ritual between the two. Every time Annette lended Lysiteha a book, the witch rode it and they were talking about during the redhead’s next visit.

“I’m sorry but no. You rode every book I brought home. Maybe you want to read them again?”

Lysithea gritted her death when she heard that. Her research had been at a dead point for the last four days and she hoped that a new source of knowledge might have helped her. “Thank you Annette but that won’t be necessary, I perfectly remember all of them.”

“Okay… But why are you making this face ? Is something the matter ?”

Quickly recomposing her smile, the witch panicked for a second, thinking that maybe she knew her secret? But that was not possible, she was making her best to be sure no one knew. But maybe… Maybe Annette should know ? She was a powerful mage, could - and would - she help her ? Lysithea already thought about it a few times without being able to decide. She had so little time left already… 

“It’s nothing serious, it’s just that I am a bit stuck with my research, that’s all.” It was serious. Extra super duper serious. Her heart was beating faster and faster in her chest. It seemed like a casual friendly chat but there was so much suddenly put on the line it wasn’t at all feeling like one.

“Oh, really ? I never thought it could happen to you ! Do you think I can help ?” Genuine kindness, as Lysithea could have expected. She really liked Annette and she truly wanted to trust her, but could she trust her with this ? And would she understand ? It was so risky, but she started to talk about it already, there was no going back, all she could do was to pray she was right about her friend. The stress was drying her throat.

“Yes… Follow me.” She sounded so formal, her voice almost felt like it was not hers. Turning her back to Annette in the same second she finished speaking, Lysithea guided her just a few steps away, into her study. There, without any word, she got some paper sheets out of a drawer. These sheets were covered in inscriptions and formulas, they were the results of her work. She got others, of course, stored elsewhere in the room, results of years of hard work and sacrifice. Handing the sheets to Annette, the witch’s heart was threatening to burst out of her chest every time it beated. Her anxiety was reaching its peak, she was sweating and despite her best efforts to look like she was perfectly calm, she was strained as hell and her forced smile would fool very few. Taking the sheets from her hands, Annette looked worried.

“Lysithea, are you alright ?”

“Yes perfectly fine don’t worry !” Annette didn’t say anything but it was visible that she was suspicious. Which only added to Lysithea’s fears. It was a matter of moments now. As the redhead rode more and more of the formulas, she frowned her eyebrows more and more and the witch gripped more and more her hands in apprehension. It was torture. This kind of waiting while so much depended of the kindness of the girl right in front of her was torture. She would discover the truth any moment now. No turning back. Only fear.

“Lysithea… What  _ kind  _ of magic are you studying?”

“Cursebreaking.” It was cursebreaking. She wanted to break a curse.

“It’s dark magic Lysithea. The dangerous kind. You can’t tell me you didn’t know that.”

Fragments of the past were reappearing. The pain in her flesh. The pain in her heart. Blurry voices. A tear rolled down her cheek. Finding the words was getting harder by the seconds. She was gripping her hands so hard her hand’s joints were white. “I… Yes...” 

“Lysithea…”

The cry of her sister. A purple flash. A body dropping to the floor. Her father’s voice. Her brother trying to hide. Another flash. Another cry. A madman’s laugh. Another flash. Another body. Tears running down her face.

“Lysithea !”

Her mother begging. Another laugh. Footsteps. An incantation. Symbols dancing in front of her. Pain. So much pain. Darkness. Death. Annette’s arms around her.

“It’s ok. I’m sorry.”

“No… I am…” Words were so hard to find. Annette’s hand slipped into hers, guiding her. They were sitting on the sofa now, Annette still holding her hand.

“Stay here, I’ll go grab something.” She took her hand from her and walked away. She pulled something.

“Damn jar, why are you so hi… aaaaaaaah!” A loud thump. The sound of shattering glass. Was she hurt ?

“Annette ?”

“Ouch… Don’t worry Lys, I just fell from the chair, I’m alright !”

Footsteps closing in. Something pulled on the table. Annette getting back on the sofa. She couldn’t look at her. Not in the eyes. Annette grabbed her hand and deposited a cookie in it.

“I’m sorry, I broke the empty jar.”

“It’s fine.” 

Words were coming back. Slowly, one by one. She took a bite. Chocolate and sugar came into help to fight the memories.

“Lys please, listen to me. And look at me.” She couldn’t.

“I’m listening.”

Annette grabbed her face with both hands and forced her to look at her face. Her hands were warm. She was beauty. Skin as white as snow in the middle of winter surrounded by hairs made of the peaches of summer. She was looking right at her with her sky blue eyes. She looked worried. She was worried. Worried for her. She was warmth and kindness. So much that herself wasn’t.

“Lysithea.”

She didn’t answer.

“Lysithea, if you don’t want to tell me things, that’s fine. I don’t want to know if it puts you in this state.” But she needed her help. She had to tell.

“No… You need to know.”

“No I don’t.”

“Annette, I need your help.” It was Annette’s turn to remain silent. “I’m cursed. I only have a bit more than a year to live.”

Seemingly at a loss for words, Annette’s eyes widened. She didn’t speak for a few seconds. Without saying anything, she moved closer to Lysithea and pulled her arms around her into a warm hug. The witch hugged her back, savouring the warmth of this moment and the bliss of being so close to her friend. They stayed like this for the goddess only knows how much time. They didn’t say anything, not because they didn’t need to talk, they still had much to discuss, but because it was so much more effective to heal a wounded soul. For once, Lysithea didn’t care about how childish it was, she grabbed Annette like she was a lifebelt. Eventually, after what felt like less than a second but hopefully lasted more, the women separated themselves from each other. They were faintly smiling, even though there was nothing to smile about.

“Lysithea, I’m so sorry… I had no idea…”

“You couldn’t have known. I’m the one who is sorry, I should have told you sooner.”

“It’s not the kind of thing you can say easily. I’m sorry, I should have noticed, you never talked about your research.”

“No, I am…”

For an unknown reason, Annette chuckled. “How about we stop there? We can go on forever like this.”

“Ah, Sorry.” 

Lysithea smiled a bit. She wasn’t exactly feeling well but already better. Savouring every bit of another cookie, she looked at Annette who was doing the same. For a moment she wished for this instant to be frozen in time, to forever feel this post-hug bliss while eating a cookie near her dearest friend. But they had things to settle and it was the redhead who brought them up first.

“May I ask you something ?”

“Sure.” Annette took a breath before pursuing.

“Why dark magic ?”

There were three kinds of magic: the white magic, the black magic and the dark magic. The first one was mostly used to heal and draw its power from the goddess herself. Black magic is the manifestation of the forces of nature like fire, wind or lightning and is the most common kind. And finally, dark magic is seen as evil by almost everyone because it draws its power from death and the strength of the livings, most of the time the spellcaster itself. It wasn’t more evil than any other kind, it was just a tool, but in most tales the parents tell to their children, the evil wizard trying to kill the villagers and kidnapping the princess uses dark magic. And it was true that it was the kind of magic to which the less scrupulous kind of mages are drawn to.

“Because it’s the only kind of magic I can use. And also because I think that fighting fire with fire might work.”

Annette’s shoulders lowered themselves as she sighed in relief. 

“Okay, I’ll help you !”

“Really ?” I’ll help you. These four small words were all Lysithea hoped for. She thought that maybe Annette would refuse or even leave the house instantly or even worse maybe. But she didn’t. She stayed, listened to her and she wanted to help. In some way, the witch thought briefly that she was already saved. She wasn’t of course, they’ll have to work harder than ever and they weren’t sure to succeed. But knowing that she won’t have to work alone was already a relief. Tears of joy were threatening to show up and restraining them wasn’t a piece of cake. That said, Annette didn’t seem to notice.

“Of course ! I lo… I mean, you’re one of my dearest friends ! There’s no way I’ll let some dumb curse carry you off ! I was a bit worried for a moment when I saw you’re studying dark magic but if we work together I’m sure we can… a-are you crying ?”

Rubbing her eyes to wipe away the forming tears, Lysithea smiled at Annette. She silently wondered why she even was scared to be rejected by her friend. She was kindness made flesh, of course she would have agreed to help from the start.

“Don’t worry. I’m fine.”

“You already said that.”

“Yes, but this time it’s true.”

“Really ?”

No. The memories of how her family was destroyed just came back to her mind, of course she wasn’t fine, but having Annette around made her believe she could be, and she didn’t want to worry her. But at the same time, she didn’t want to lie nor to hide the truth anymore.

“No, I’m not feeling that good but being with you makes me feel a lot better.”

Wait did she just say that aloud ? Since Annette’s cheeks suddenly became pink she probably did.

“I’ll stay with you until you feel fine then ! I can even stay for the night !”

“Hey, I’m not a child, I can watch over myself.” She faked to be offended but the smile on her lips was beliying her words.

“I know, you’re a fully grown-up adult who just needs a hug !”

Without a warning, Annette launched herself across the sofa right onto Lysithea who didn’t have time to brace herself for impact and could only scream as she received love right into her arms. Giggling for a few seconds, the two mages looked at each other.

“Warn me next time;”

“It would have been less funny and your scream was cute !”

“Sh-shut up !”

They kept giggling for a few more seconds, before staying silent. They were just lying on the sofa in each other’s arms. The fire was purring in the fireplace, giving its warmth to the women. Outside, the wind’s howl was much more gentle than when they met. Still, it was trying to get in and ruin the moment both women were savouring. They could stay like this until nightfall and then move to the bed and get in the same position once again.

“I’m okay with you staying for the night, but you remember that I still only have one bed ?”

“I-It’s alright !”

Was it the flames’s light that made Annette look bright red ? She was so cute, Lysithea could only hug her a bit closer. This position was nice. She could feel both of their hearts beating, the gentleness of her friend’s arms as she hugged her and the softness of her skin against her own. The weight on her chest was not a burden, it was actually part of the everything that made that moment perfect. Running her hand through the redhead’s hair, Lysithea wondered if it was the moment to name the heat in her chest. Lying there, hugging each other and secrets casted to the side, she probably wouldn’t have that kind of opportunity twice. But it wasn’t wise. She wasn’t saved yet and they had so much work to do, that heat would just be in the way, slowing them down, maybe enough to kill her. Now wasn’t the moment to name that feeling, nor to share it, but there will be a day where nothing would be an obstacle anymore.

“When I’ll be saved Annette, I’ll have something to tell you.”

At first, Annette didn’t react but a smile quickly formed on her lips before she whispered an answer:

“Me too.”

~

Many years later, when the witches of the old forest will be loved for the help they give and feared for the snowstorms they’ll be said to trigger, no one will know that all they are doing during those is to cuddle under a blanket.

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! I hope you like this fic! It's a bit late for a christmas fic but I still wanted to write it. It's the first fic I write so don't hesitate to tell me what I can improve.  
> Have a great day!


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